In conclusion: even though lightning under raining conditions is very frequent, it can also occur without any sign of precipitation. In any case, it is important to make sure that installed lightning rods work properly under adverse weather conditions.
One of the next things we wanted the answer to was can there be Lightning with no rain?
This is what we discovered. yes, absolutely with no rain at ground level. Both cloud to cloud and cloud to ground lightning can happen with no ground-level rain. The electrical energy that powers the lightning comes from the action of water droplets and/or ice crystals in clouds but whether or not any of the water or ice makes it to the ground is a separate issue.
A frequent question we ran across in our research was “Is it possible for Lightning to strike without rain?”.
Here is what my research found. Yes, thunder and lightning can occur without rain. It’s usually called “dry lightning”. However, thunder and lightning can also occur several miles away from a thunderstorm, called “bolt out of the blue”.
Why is it that there can be lightning without rain?
That’s why you hear it when lightning strikes; the heat of the bolt basically causes the air to explode out from around the bolt, then rush back in to fill the void. Sonic boom effect. So heat lightning, thunder snow, etc all cause thunder without rain necessarily being involved.
Can lightning occur without thunder?
(Image credit: NOAA) No, it is not possible to have lightning without thunder, according to NOAA. Thunder is a direct result of lightning. If you see lightning but don’t hear thunder, it is because the thunder is too far away.
One article stated that thunder is caused by lightning, so it cannot happen independently. The loud cracking sound of thunder occurs when lightning raises the surrounding air temperature by thousands of degrees, causing it to rapidly expand and compress, according to Sci, and jinks.
When we were reading we ran into the query “Can lightning exist without thunder?”.
No, it is not possible to have lightning without thunder, according to NOAA. Thunder is a direct result of lightning. If you see lightning but don’t hear thunder, it is because the thunder is too far away.
Another common question is “Is it possible to hear thunder without seeing Lightning?”.
Yes it is possible to hear the thunder and not see the lightning during bright daylight. The thunder c loud may be close enough to hear the thunder but if the lightning is inside the cloud and with the bright surrounding sunlight you may not see the lightning.
How was there lightning but no thunder or rain?
For example: Sheet lightning – cloud-to-cloud when the viewer sees brightening of the surface of a cloud not the actual lightning flash. Forked lightning – cloud-to-ground that has branches. Ribbon lightning – high cross winds blow each successive return stroke slightly to one side of the previous return stroke, causing a ribbon effect.
A person struck directly by lightning becomes a part of the main lightning discharge channel. A side flash (also called a side splash) occurs when lightning strikes a taller object near the victim and a portion of the current jumps from taller object Ground Current. Streamers, and conduction are a few more ideas to keep in mind.